Opal (Rare Gems Series Book 4) (24 page)

“
He’d run so quickly that she’d never catch him.” He watched Rufus pull at his tie again. The fact that he was willing to stand in with him made him love the guy all that much more. “I’d very much like it if you were to be my best man.”

Thad
looked shocked for several seconds, then nodded. “It would be an honor. Did you know that Opal asked Angie to be her maid of honor? She is beside herself with excitement. But I wanted to tell you something…I know that…hell buddy, we’ve been friends for a long time. I think having you as a brother-in-law will be fantastic.”

He handed him the ring he
’d approved from his mother. She’d sent him five rings, but this one he loved. Sloan decided that the other rings would be saved for when their children were born. Thad whistled loudly as he held the ring that would bond them as husband and wife.

“
My mother designed it. She said she loved it for its simplicity as well as its beauty. I think it suits Opal more than anything I could have purchased for her.” Thad nodded.

The ring was carved from an opal
of such a beautiful shade of creamy blue that he wondered if his mother had made it. It was a darker opal with many streaks of white and blues running throughout it. But it was the heart that caught one’s attention; it had seemingly been made in the stone just to be used for this purpose. Thad put it into his pocket.

As soon as they were
assembled in the large room, Sloan looked out over the crowd. He’d never seen so many people before. As he watched, more and more seemed to spill out everywhere, including the gardens where he and the men now stood. As soon as the harpist started playing, he looked to the back of the room.

Unlike Earth
’s traditional weddings, the bride came out with the maids. Each of them, and in this case her sisters and Ursula, came out carrying a small part of her train. Angie, holding a basket of leaves that meant long life to his kind, kept looking back at her aunts to make sure they were in line. Opal’s grandmother was giving her to him and held her hand. It was the bouquet of flowers that made his breath catch. They were his Opal’s Dream.

When
Opal was standing beside him, he reached for her and kissed her. Much to the amusement of the room, he was told to wait his turn. When Opal blushed at him, he kissed her again just to keep it there. The room was called to order and they all looked at his mom and dad.

“
Today I am honored to give my son a wife. And in the tradition of our kind, I’ve been asked to preside over their union. Today…today I gain something very precious to us. We have a daughter to call our own. And a large family to go along with her. It’s more than any man could hope or ever wish for.” His dad wiped at a tear and smiled at him. “Sloan, son of Kimdar and Calane, Rulers of Darkness Realm, do you wish to spend your eternity and beyond with Opal Grace Erickson, daughter of earth, sister to many and loved by everyone?”

“
Yes.” His dad nodded at him and he looked at Opal. “I love you with all my heart. I really didn’t think I could, what with you being so stubborn and all, but you made me realize how lonely I’ve been, how sad I’d be if you were gone, and how much I could love someone coming into my life.”

“
Good boy.” His dad looked at Opal. “Opal, my dear, would you care for my son, love him throughout all eternity, give him the greatest gift of all kind, and keep him as close to your heart as you can?”

“
I can’t.” The room seemed to still and his heart did the same. “I can’t keep him close to my heart, because he has it all. I love him with all that I am and will for the rest of my life. I want children with him, lives with him, and I want to share all that we can be with him.”

His dad leaned over and kissed her cheek and then hugged her.
Sloan could only stare as his dad sobbed on his new daughter-in-law’s shoulder for several minutes as he thanked her for being her. When he stood again, Sloan looked out over the room again and noticed there was not a dry eye in the place, and that even Rufus was wiping at his cheeks.

“
As I was saying.” His dad looked at him. “You’ve got yourself a winner here, son. You know that, right?”

“
I do.” His dad told him to give her the ring. He looked at Opal once again as he slipped it over her finger and then kissed it. “I love you with all of my being. I will love you forever.”

He pulled her to him and leaned down to her mouth. He wanted it to be romantic, he wanted her to be breathless afterwards
, but all he could think about was claiming his bride. So without any thought to the people in the room, he kissed her, then lifted her body to his and left the room with her nearly wrapped around him.

The suite that they had been given was big
, not that he cared. There was a bed, and right now, that was all he could think about. Lifting his head just enough to look at her, he smiled. She smiled right back.

“
I couldn’t wait.” She nodded and he kissed her again. “I need you. I need to be deep inside of you more than I need my next breath.”

“
Hurry.” Sloan stripped her down. He wasn’t gentle about it either. When she was standing in front of him with just her thigh high stockings and her heels on, he had to step back or attack.

“
Christ.” Opal grinned at him and he moved to her. But she laid back on the bed before he could touch her. Sloan pulled off his jacket and tossed it to the floor, then his tie and shirt. He was standing in just his pants when she reached for him.

Sloan loved this woman. He tried his best to show her how much
, but she tore his pants open, breaking the zipper and the button off before he could do much more than watch. As soon as his cock was freed, she was taking him deep into her mouth. Sloan’s eyes rolled to the back of his head.

Her mouth did things to him that had him moaning and begging her for release. When she finally lifted her head from his cock with a tiny pop, he stared down at her. He was lightheaded, dizzy even. All his blood was centered in one place
, and he was in deep need of release.

“
I need to make love to you.” Opal laid back and spread her legs for him. She was so wet that her thighs were damp, as was the bed beneath her. Dropping to his knees, he put her thighs up over his shoulders and spread her wider with his fingers. Leaning in, he suckled her clit into his mouth and bit her. Her release flooded his mouth with her cream.

Lapping greedily, he drank from her. She came several more times before he knew that if he didn
’t stop now, he never would. Moving up her body, biting her and then licking the wound closed, he took her breast deep into his mouth and sank his fangs into her. When she cried out again, Sloan filled her with his cock and lifted her ass to him to take her deeper and harder.

“
Come for me.” She dug her nails into his back and screamed again. When she licked his throat, her fangs scraping over his pounding pulse, he moved in and out of her faster, pounding her hard, knowing that when she bit him, sank those lovely fangs into him, he was going to come harder than he ever had before. But he was wrong.

She bit him and his world splintered, his mind shattered
, and his entire being, his body and all, came to an earth-shattering halt before he came back together with a sonic boom. He sank his fangs into her, biting her wherever he could until her blood filled his mouth, his body, and Christ, even his heart. Sloan felt his world pinpoint into a single white dot before he was brought under.

He was out for only seconds.
When he looked down at his wife, the love of his life, he could see that she, too, had succumbed to the darkness, and held her to him as he laid there. She stirred beneath him and he looked down again, and noticed the color of her eyes immediately.

“
Did Ursula touch you?” She nodded. “She gave you a gift. Did she tell you what it was? Did she explain what she’d done?”

“
No. She said you had the same gift and I…what did she do?” Sloan was almost afraid to tell her. Excitement ran over his body, but fear too that she’d be upset. “Sloan?”

“
We’re going to have a child.” Opal nodded, but he was sure she didn’t understand. “I mean, we just created a child. And because of the glow in your eyes, the color of them, I’d say that this child will have things you and I don’t. Magic, and a great deal of it.”

“
She told me. The story of the opal, she told me.” He shifted when she did and she lay over him now. “I’m guessing I should learn to ask her from now on, huh?”

“
I’d say that’s a good thing for both of us.” He lifted her chin up and looked at her. “Your eyes are blue now. Like a Jinn. I wonder how much you have from this.”

“
Does it matter?”

He shook his head
, and she laid her head back on his chest. Sloan tried to think if he was upset or not, but all he could think of was that Opal was going to have his baby.

“
Sloan, do you think we should go back to the wedding? Your parents have been planning this, so we should at least make an appearance.”

“
We should.” But neither of them moved. “I love you, Opal Crane. I will love you forever.”

“
And I love you.” This time when she sat up she moved off him and stood before him. “But I’m starved. I need to find something to fill me up if we’re going to make love on our wedding night.”

He was still laughing when he walked into the reception room. They were greeted with a loud cheer
, and he kissed her soundly when someone shouted for him to do so. Sloan doubted that he’d ever been this happy, and wondered if he’d stay this way for the rest of his life. He looked at Opal. Yes, he decided. He would.

About the Author

Kathi Barton, author of the bestselling series Force of Nature, lives in Nashport, Ohio with her husband Paul. In addition to writing full time Kathi likes to spend time with her eight grandkids, three children and three children-in-laws. She writes to rel
ax and have fun.

Her muse, a cross between Jimmy Stewart and Hugh Jackman brings them to life for her readers in a way that has them coming back time and again for more. Her favorite genre is paranormal romance with a great deal of spice. You can visit Kathi on line and drop her an email if you’d like. She loves hearing from her fans.
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